Ravnica Forevermore
by Entrox Licher
Summary: Ravnica's guilds continue their rivalry with renewed strength after the shattering of the Guildpact, but a new threat looms on the horizon that will force them to work together.
1. Ravnica Reborn

The plane of Ravnica was in a tense state. The guilds were all struggling for power and control, and the stakes were higher than ever. After the catastrophic events of the decamillennial, where the Boros Legion was forced to arrest the standing guildmaster of the House Dimir, Szadek, therefore revealing the existence of the guild to the public, and shattering the Guildpact.

Teysa Karlov, of the Orzhov Syndicate, drafted and put into effect her own Guildpact, put without the magic that made the first Guildpact binding, this weaker version was quite ineffective. In fact many of the guild paruns, some of which were the current guildmasters, disliked the agreement very much, but they grudgingly agreed due to the pressure the Orzhov guild put on them.

The guilds continued to battle for supremacy, but in the bureaucratic fashion that was custom. But little did they know that a new threat loomed on the horizon, one that could bring the end of the plane of Ravnica altogether.

But for now, the guilds continued their daily routines. The public of the city of Ravnica was almost completely oblivious to the true motives behind most of the guilds. Some of the guilds were as they claimed, but many had ulterior motives and goals.

The Azorius Senate is the first of the guilds, and they are the government and law-oriented sector of Ravnica. They are led by Isperia, the supreme judge of the guild. The sphinx gave up her solitude, which all of her race prefer, to be able to lead the Azorius Guild, and through them, Ravnica, to a just and equal harmony. Isperia is helped by the three main Columns of the guild: The Jelenn Column, of law-makers, the Lyev Column, of law enforcers, and the Sova, of judges. The guild convenes in New Prahv, the new official guildhall of the Azorius. The guild wields immense power, despite many of its laws being ignored by the other guilds, and all the other guilds know that they would love to rule the entire city, if they had their way.

Next among the guilds is the Boros Legion. They represent Ravnica's military force, functioning as both the official army and police force. Leading the Legion is the angel Aurelia, the heart and drive of the entire guild. The guild parun, or founder, Razia, was more aloof and untouchable, commanding the Boros guild from afar. Aurelia on the other hand, is always at the front lines, and interacts much more with the guildmembers. As such, Razia acts as more of inspiration and motivation for the Boros than she ever was in her life and leadership. The Boros guildhall is Sunhome, considered by many to be an impregnable fortress, and the epitome of what the Boros stand for: strength and unity. The Boros is fiercely loyal to the law, and, to a certain extent, the Senate. They envision a unified and law-abiding utopia, and they intend to chop down any who stand in the way of that vision.

Yet another of the guilds, though not publically recognized until after the decamillennial, is the House Dimir, a shadowy faction, that consists of hirable services of espionage, assassination, and illegal activity in general. Since their unmasking as the decamillennial, they have been forced to take up a public face consisting of a few low-ranking guild members acting as investigators, reporters, and other such roles, but the true face of the Dimir is still the intricate web of spies, assassins and thieves. They are led by Lazav, a shapeshifting mage that controls the entire Dimir network of criminals. He plots and manipulates from the shadows, using his shapeshifting abilities to make discreet public appearances. His arrival was a miracle for the guild, because after the decamillennial they had lost their parun and active guild leader, Szadek, and were left in shambles until Lazav arrived. Szadek's ghost still aids the Dimir through his control of Ravnica's ghostly district, Agyrem. The command center for the House Dimir is the Duskmantle. The original Duskmantle was lost as Szadek was the only one with knowledge on how to access it. Thus, it was recreated in the Ravnican undercity. Many believe that Lazav's goal is to discover Niv-Mizzet's mysterious plots and turn them to his, and the Dimir's, favor.

Another of Ravnica's guilds is the Golgari Swarm, making up Ravnica's agricultural and waste-management division. The current guildmaster is Jarad, a prominent lich lord. He is only the most recent in a long line of guildmasters, as the Golgari believe in an unending cycle of life and death, and as such change their guildmasters with much more frequency than the other guilds. Aiding the guild leader are the Cilia, a council of sorts that act as advisors and spies for Jarad, but they rarely convene all in the same place. The guildhall for the Golgari is now Korozda, the Maze of Decay. It is a rundown cathedral, now overgrown with plants and fungus, and surrounded by a huge plant maze. Korozda is guarded by a huge assortment of zombies, plants, and insects. However, Jarad does have a complicated tale of ascension to power. His predecessor was his twin sister, Savra, who made a fiendish agreement with Szadek, the Dimir guildmaster, to gain control of the Swarm by reviving the Golgari parun, Svogthir. Savra aided Svogthir in overthrowing the current leaders of the guild, the Sisters of the Stone Death, promising to give leadership to Svogthir, but after the Sisters were overthrown, Savra betrayed Svogthir and took over the Swarm herself. Then, at Szadek's command, Savra managed to corrupt two more guilds: the Boros, by replacing their leaders with shapeshifting doppelgangers, and the Selesnya, by Savra becoming a member of the Chorus of the Conclave. But soon after giving this power to Szadek, Savra was betrayed, and Szadek snapped her neck. With the control and influence given to him by Savra is with which Szadek launched his attack on the Festival of the Guildpact, at the decamillennial, trying to kill the parun of the Selesnya Conclave, Mat'Selesnya. Unfortunately for him, Jarad sought to make amends for the traitorous acts of his sister, and as such assisted the Boros, specifically Agrus Kos, in taking down the power-hungry vampire. Soon after these events, and becoming guild leader of the Golgari, Jarad married with one of the guards of the Selesnya Conclave, Fonn, and had a son, named Myc. There was a long argument about how the boy should be raised, but eventually his parents resolved to split his time between the two guilds, Golgari and Selesnya. Soon though, a blood witch of the Rakdos became attracted to the prospect of the blood of a guildmaster for one of her spells, and kidnapped Myc. Jarad went to the witch, and managed to save his son, but at the cost of his own life. Due to his proficiency with necromancy though, Jarad's spirit was able to posses his own corpse, becoming a lich. The Swarm maintains good relations with the Selesnya, but is adamantly opposed to the Dimir. They seek to become a grand force in Ravnica, and plan to do so through growing their ranks with various members consisting of reanimated undead and all assortment of plants, an effective balance and cycle of life and death.

Next among the Ravnican guilds is the Gruul Clans. Officially, they act as Ravnica's conservation officers, wildlife protectors, rangers, gamekeepers, foresters, and generally anything that has to do with nature. Because the Gruul guild consists of many clans, no one individual has managed to unify them all, but there is one that whose name is spoken with fear and respect: Borborygmos. This massive Cyclops is the leader of the Burning Tree Clan, and, though not the undisputed leader of the Gruul, because there is nothing undisputed in the guild, when Borborygmos says something, the Gruul _almost _always listen. Again, as there is little official and determined in this chaotic guild, there is not one place where all the Gruul meet together in peace, but there is Skarrg. In the ruins of a once great palace, the Gruul Clans fins themselves converging at one point or another. Though there is no official truce called here, indeed there are many bloody battles fought at Skarrg, great feasts are held there, and impottant matters, like grudges, are decided and fought over. Also worthy of mention is Ulasht, the Hate Seed. It is a great hydra that belongs to no clan, but is revered by many of the Gruul, because it is thought of as an embodiment of what they stand for. The Gruul have grown increasingly volatile, as the Clans have no real central leadership, and their domain, that is to say, the natural part of Ravnica, is being significantly diminished, to the point where there are many groups of individuals within the Gruul Clans that seek the destruction of civilization.

Among the most prominent guilds is the Izzet League, which houses Ravnica's scientific quarter: Engineers, scientists, inventors, and all such professions are contained within the Izzet League. The Izzet League is still currently led by their parun, Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind. The great ruby-red dragon is the most intelligent being in Ravnica, and it is widely believed that, if he so desired, he could take over the entire plane. Indeed the dragon has said so himself, but says he abstains from doing so due to the monotony that running Ravnica would bring. But then again, Niv-Mizzet is as narcissistic and egotistical as they come, so who knows? Instead of trying to control Ravnica, as so many of the other guilds seek to do, Niv-Mizzet occupies much of his time in his experiments and discoveries, working hard to a goal that everyone knows exists, but only Niv-Mizzet knows what it is. Due to this, he leaves the day-to-day running of the guild to his underlings, namely, a group called the Izmundi. Their job is to handle the daily affairs of the guild, and at the same time, keep Niv-Mizzet informed of important events. The Izmagnus are the highest-ranking individuals within the Izmundi, and their identities are often kept a secret. But even they are not privy to Niv-Mizzet's grand scheme. The Nivix is where the Izzet League calls home. A huge structure with many levels and layers dedicated to different purposes, the topmost being Niv-Mizzet's personal abode. The Izzet are constantly providing the denizens of Ravnica with new, practical inventions, but their true purpose is to help Niv-Mizzet fulfill his endgame, whatever it may be.

The next guild is the Orzhov Syndicate. They make up Ravnica's aristocracy, in addition to a small portion of the businesses in Ravnica. The Orzhov are also considered the official church of Ravnica, and they use that power to manipulate many. Indeed the Orzhov do have great deal of power in terms of the afterlife, as their parun and current guildmaster is the Obzedat, a collection of the ghosts of many of Ravnica's old patriarchs and matriarchs. The Obzedat maintain the greed they had in life, and make the perfect leader for a guild focused on wealth and power. The guildhall for the Syndicate is Orzhova, an opulent cathedral that acts as the center of all of the Orzhov's operations. Even though many of the citizens of Ravnica know the Orzhov are a corrupt organization, many fall victim due to great promises of money, long life, happy afterlife, and power. The Orzhov syndicate value power and wealth above all else and use any and all methods at their disposal to get it.

Then there is the Rakdos Cult, the guild mainly in charge of the Ravnican food and entertainment industries. In addition to this, they also provide much of Ravnica's manual labor, in activities such as mining. Their guildmaster and parun is, or was, Rakdos, a sadistic demon, that takes great pleasure in seeing his acts take large repercussions. The guildhall of the Rakdos is a fiery dungeon build around a series of lava pits, by the name of Rix Maadi. The Rakdos guild is somewhat chaotic, because when Rakdos in awake, he holds grand contests and gladiator fights so he can enjoy the pain of others. His is completely in control during this time. But Rakdos spends most of his time slumbering in the lava pits of his guildhall, and while he does, the many blood witches of the guild battle for power in their attempts to overthrow or control Rakdos. It was on one of these attempts that the blood witch Izolda kidnapped Myc, the son of Jarad, the Golgari guildmaster. With the blood of the child and some draconian brain fluid supplied to her by former guildmaster of the Simic Combine, Momir Vig, Izolda planned to brew a potion that would let her control Rakdos. However, when Myc's parents interrupted the spell, control of Rakdos fell instead to Myc, who went on a short rampage, until Izolda managed to finish her spell. However, she did so as Rakdos was in the middle of a fierce battle against the Kraj, an abomination created by Momir Vig, and though Rakdos succeeded in defeating the beast, he fell into a coma. The had a serious whiplash effect on Izolda, and as she was suffering from this, her fellow blood witches, all of witch wanted the power that Izolda wielded, tore her limb from limb, each one absorbing part of the spell, each one gaining power over a small part of Rakdos's mind. His coma deepened and worsened, and the previous Boros guildmaster, Feather, threw his body back into the lava pits in which he slumbered. Now the Rakdos Cult is waiting to see if their leader will ever rise again.

Another one of the Ravnican guilds is the Selesnya Conclave, the ones who function as Ravnica's auxiliary constabulary, though they act more as peacekeepers, and also as fervent religionists, believing absolutely in the will of their parun, Mat'Selesnya. They are led by Trostani, a three-headed druid that is said to be the voice through which Mat'Selesnya speaks. The Conclave's representative virtues are order, life and harmony, each represented on a different head of Trostani. The guildhall and resting place of Mat'Selsnya is Vitu-Ghazi the City Tree. Mat'Selesnya encased herself within the tree so she might preserve the order of the Conclave. Before Trostani took the helm, the official leader of the Selesnya was a group of druids called the Chorus of the Conclave, and they were the ones who transmitted Mat'Selesnya's messages. However, when Savra, manipulated by the evil Szadek, managed to infiltrate the Chorus, and nearly resulting in the end of Vitu-Ghazi and Mat'Selesnya, the Chorus of the Conclave disbanded, and was replaced by Trostani. Though to many it seems that the Selesnya Conclave are a peace-loving guild, they have a sinister side not many know of. Their reach is long and wide, and when someone speaks out of turn in regards to the Conclave—such as saying they are a nature cult that brainwashes its members—they mysteriously disappear. When chaos would favor them, it ominously happens. Many of these actions are attributed to the Conclave's secretive white-robed members, called the quietmen. Though officially they act as bodyguards and envoys, they can, and will, perform and task that is asked of them. So most denizens of Ravnica agree that the Conclave is a good natured, peaceful guild, even though many of them know that they are just as ruthless as the other guilds.

Finally, there is the Simic Combine, who were originally in charge of studying and preserving all life on Ravnica. However, the Combine's former guildmaster, an elf by the name of Momir Vig, envisioned more purpose for his guild: to improve upon the Ravnican life forms. To achieve this, he created cytoplasts, globules capable of passing genetic traits, such as strength and intelligence. However, Vig's creations were not received well by the citizens of Ravnica, who refused to use the cytoplasts. Undeterred, Vig modified the cytoplasts so they need only touch a being for the traits to be transferred. He then ordered the guildmembers to secretly spread the cytoplasts among Ravnica. To his dismay however, he saw that the Ravnicans did not noticeably improve. He decided it was time to wipe out all life on Ravnica, and start anew. To this end, he allied himself with Svogthir, the Golgari parun, who was possessing the body of Savra, and created Project Kraj, a huge monstrosity made entirely of cytoplasts. However, the spirit of an old Boros soldier, by the name of Agrus Kos, overpowered Svogthir, took control of Savra's body, and killed Momir Vig. However, the Kraj was still loose and it rampaged across Ravnica. In addition to this, the Kraj called upon all the cytoplast in the nearby area, so the people who were unknowingly bearing it had it painfully ripped from them to go and join the Kraj. Eventually, Rakdos stopped the Kraj's rampage, but suffered severe consequences himself. The Kraj's body mysteriously disappeared, though some people reported white-robed individuals near the corpse. After these events, the Simic Combine was left in ashes and turmoil, until the merfolk emerged from underground sinkholes, and Zegana took control of the guild. Since her emergence, the Combine has embraced their old ways, druid-like, naturally advancing life, using magic for their purposes. However, Zegana is not the perfect savior that she would like to be seen as. When the sinkholes, known as Zonots, appeared in Ravnica, they reconnected the oceans to the city. Seven of them appeared, and the merfolk emerged from all of them. They established a unique governmental system within the guild. The Zonots became individual outposts of the Simic, and each of the Zonots has a Speaker. Zegana is the Speaker for Zonot One, and though she quickly took leadership of the Combine for herself, she states that this power could easily be revoked by the Speakers' Chamber, the council that consists of all the Speakers. Many believe this to be false however, as it is said Zegana controls the Chamber, if it even exists. The new guildhall for the Simic is Zonot Seven, known as Zameck. This acts as the place for Simic and non-Simic members alike to meet and speak with Zegana and other high-ranking members of the Combine. The guilds efforts of advancement and evolution are now almost entirely focused towards the subterranean oceans, as they were covered when the city of Ravnica was built, much to the dismay and outrage to the merfolk who remained trapped within. Though none of the merfolk that have emerged from the sinkholes show the slightest hint of resentment, many fear what plans Zegana may have for the oceans and the city.

And that is how the guilds stand as of yet, but with the shattering of the Guildpact, many old restrictions were removed, and since Karlov's version has no magical power behind it, it is easy to break. Many of the guilds have already begun putting into place their new plans and schemes, each vying for their own goals. Though the common element among them is opposition to the other guilds, which would make their new looming threat even more powerful. But for now the guilds continue their plots, oblivious to this mysterious new enemy…


	2. First Contact

Rain poured down over Ravnica, forcing most of the cities inhabitants indoors, but creating a perfect amount of emptiness for others. One such individual hurried down a series of dark alleys, not wanting to be late for his meeting. In fact, she wanted to be early. Myrica had stumbled into this meeting almost by accident. But now there was no way to avoid it.

It had all started with the necklace.

Myrica was as normal a Ravnican as she could possibly be. She was among the vast hordes of guildless that lived within the city. She had a few good friends, and a stable job working as manager at one of the many factories of the Izzet League. She was very intuitive and had a spark of genius within her that had led the Izzet League to try to recruit her many a time, though she had always refused.

One day, just as she was about to leave the factory, one of her workers called out. She was leaving early because she planned to have a nice dinner with her friends, but for some reason, she stayed and went to see what was the matter. The worker, a goblin by the Koal, was staring in dismay at the assembly line, which was spitting out multicolored fumes.

The factory was in charge of making various products out of mizzium, one of Niv-Mizzet's inventions. Mizzium is a metal that is easy to forge and mold, but it is absolutely indestructible, causing it to be in very high demand. While there were a few blacksmiths who ordered and used raw mizzium, but most of the demand was for products made of mizzium. The Izzet League itself used large amounts of mizzium in automatons, coils and conductors, even in some of their inventions. This factory however, was dedicated to producing mizzium products used by the public, such as tools. Even raw mizzium coating was supplied so anyone could coat and existing item with a protective layer of mizzium.

The assembly line in question was the one in charge of cutting down large chunks of mizzium and then either sending it off to other lines to be molded, or packaging it to be supplied to the blacksmiths. The line had been halted however, and was beginning to spew mizzium all over the place. Shaking her head in exasperation, Myrica went over to the poor goblin while shouting, "Stop assembly line four!"

When she arrived Koal turned his head quickly and a mixture of relief and fear showed in his eyes. "I'm sorry boss, I swear I didn't do nothing. It just suddenly stopped moving!" The goblin said. In a severe, but fair tone Myrica said, "We'll see about that." Koal gulped.

Analyzing the fume covered system, she quickly determined that something must have gotten caught between the gears, causing the entire system to come to a grinding halt. _Probably a stray piece of mizzium, because those gears spin fast, its incredible that whatever's jamming it hasn't been torn to shreds. _Myrica thought.

She put on a pair of rubber gloves and carefully, but quickly, reached down to where the jam was and pulled the object out. Immediately, the conveyor belt sprang back to life. Koal heaved a sigh of relief, but Myrica just stared at what she had just pulled out: An ornate gold and silver necklace, with a giant ruby hanging off it. Even more amazing than the necklace itself was the fact that it didn't bear a single mark, and it was definitely not made of mizzium.

Koal looked at the necklace and gave a low whistle.

"That there is quite a pretty piece isn't it boss? How in the world did it get in the gears though…" Koal wondered.

Right at that moment though, Myrica realized she didn't have time to wonder, as she was already very late for her dinner. Swearing under her breath, she turned and started running towards the door, pausing only to throw a key ring at Koal. "Lockup after today's quota is met Koal. Not a second sooner!" She shouted over her shoulder. Then she exited the factory and left Koal amazed at the responsibility entrusted to him.

Myrica dashed through the dim streets of Ravnica and arrived at her friend's house only 5 minutes late. Out of breath, she knocked at the door. She was greeted warmly, no one commenting on or even noticing her slight delay. They all had a nice long dinner. Near the end of the night, Myrica remembered the necklace and pulled it out of her pocket to show her friends.

"You say you pulled that out of the gears at your factory?! That's amazing!" One them said.

"Do you know what its worth? By the looks of it I'd say it could fetch you a pretty penny. I doubt you'll be wanting to wear it yourself." Another of her friends, Lokka, said. She was right, as Myrica was a simple woman, not the type to wear extravagant jewelry such as the necklace.

"Well, if you're interested, I'd be happy to buy it off you Myrica." Yet another of her friends, named Ilia, said.

"No there's no need, you can have it." Myrica said.

Ilia on the other hand was firm. "No no, I won't deprive you of this nice source of income. I refuse to simply take it from you. "

"But how could we ever determine its value?" Myrica argued.

"Well," Lokka said with a sly smile. "You can go to the Orzhov. They know value and gold like no other. I'm sure they could tell you a fair price."

Ilia smiled triumphantly. "There. We take it to the Orzhov, Lokka can give us a good name, and after we determine its value I will buy it off you fair and square."

"Fine!" Myrica said holding her arms up in defeat. "You win. Well go tomorrow then, I have the day off."

"Perfect!" Ilia said.

And so the topic of the necklace was dropped, and not long after that the friends bade each other farewell.

The next day Ilia and Myrica went together to a jeweler recommended to them by Lokka. The jeweler, a man by the name of Jorn, was a member of the Orzhov Syndicate.

A tiny bell rang as they entered the jeweler's shop. A man the two woman assumed was Jorn ran out form behind the counter. "Hello, how are you today?" the man asked politely.

"Very fine thanks you for asking." Ilia said.

"Excellent, excellent, I'm glad to hear it. How may I be of assistance to you lovely young ladies?" Jorn asked.

"I have come into possession of a necklace, and my friend here seeks to buy it from me. We are here to try to determine its values." Myrica explained, taking out the necklace. The jeweler's eyes widened when he saw the necklace, but not in greed but in amazement.

"That is a beautiful peace you have there. It would be an honor to help. May I?" He said, pointing towards the necklace. Myrica nodded, and placed it in his hand.

Jorn took it to his desk and examined it under a glass for about fifteen minutes. Finally the jeweler raised his head. "It is very hard to say, but I would have to say about a thousand gold pieces, perhaps a bit less."

The man stood up and tried to hand the necklace back to Myrica, but it slipped out of his grasp and fell to the floor. The second it did, the great ruby shattered, and the necklace snapped. With a look of devastation the jeweler stood rooted in place for a moment, then rushed behind his counter and brought out a small bag.

"You have my sincerest apologies." He said, with a guilty look. "I know you meant to sell it to your friend, but I can offer you the money it was worth." He said, pressing the bag of coins into Myrica's hand. Myrica however, was not satisfied. "You cheating scoundrel! That necklace could not have broken that easily. You switched it out when you stood up to hand it to me. Give it back!"

Ilia looked at her with surprise, but Jorn's face revealed what Myrica said was true. However, just at that moment, two Orzhov guildmages entered the store. "Is there a problem here Jorn?" One of them asked.

"Why yes, actually, these two women were accusing me of thievery and refuse to leave me in peace." Jorn said.

The other guildmage looked at the two women menacingly. "Is that so? No, you must be mistaken. I'm sure they were just leaving."

Left with no choice, Myrica and Ilia left without a fight.

The next day, at the factory, Myrica was approached by someone who clearly belonged to the Izzet League, as could be determined by their red robes. "Myrica is it? I have to speak with you." The mysterious individual said. Sensing it would not be in her best interest to refuse, she closed her office door, and sat the person down. After sitting down herself, Myrica asked nervously. "Is something wrong?"

The League member pondered the question before answering, "Yes I suppose there is. The necklace you found the other day. I need it."

"Why is that?" She asked suspiciously.

The Izzet member hesitated. "It is an item of extreme value to the guild, as it has certain…abilities."

"You mean it's magic? What kind of magic?" Myrica asked.

Finally fed up, the red-robed individual snapped, "The kind that doesn't concern you! Now give me the necklace!"

"I'm afraid I no longer have it. It is now in the possession of the Syndicate." Myrica said, somewhat annoyed.

"The Orzhov!? You gave it to the Orzhov!?" The person remained silent for a moment, taking deep breaths. "You are fired. Leave now."

"You can't do that!" Myrica said outraged.

"Actually as a member of the Izmundi, and owner of this factory, I _can_ do that. Now leave before I am forced to _make_ you leave." The high-ranking Izzet guildmember said furiously.

Suddenly intimidated, Myrica stood and just left the job she had maintained for the past three years. She went home and thought long and hard about what to do. Eventually she decided upon an irrational, but personally satisfying choice: She was going to get the necklace back, and she was going to keep it.

There was only one place that could help her steal something right from the clutches of one of the guilds, and that was the Dimir. Even though the Dimir had set up a small public front, Myrica knew that there was still a secretive side to them, and that was the side she planned to employ.

Myrica went to one of said public offices and spoke to the person in charge. "I need to employ a person for a less than…socially accepted task." She said discreetly. The chief detective looked at her puzzled. "What do you mean by that?"

Myrica shook the trench coat she wore, causing the many coins inside one of the pockets to jingle. The detective gave her an almost imperceptible nod, and then said out loud, "I'm afraid I still don't know what—Oh no!" He exclaimed as a few scraps of paper dropped from his desk. Leaning down to pick them up, Myrica saw that there were symbols on four of them. One of them had a bag of gold, another a skull, another an eye, and another a question mark. _He's asking me what service I need. A thief, an assassin, a spy, or something different. _Myrica thought to herself.

She threw away all the scraps but the one with the bag of gold, which she put back on the detective's desk. The detective placed his hand on it. "Thank you for that. Well as I was saying before, I don't think I can help you. Terribly sorry." He lifted his hand and turned and left. Myrica picked up the scrap of paper. It now had an address on it. Myrica smiled and said softly, "Not at all, not at all…"

The entire encounter had left Myrica thrilled, as she had enjoyed the secretive exchange, and now she was an official client of the House Dimir.

That very night, Myrica had gone to the address, which had turned out to be an abandoned Golgari farm. There was however one farmer plowing away at the ground. As she approached, the farmer stopped plowing, and quickly ran to her.

"What, where and who?" He asked not looking at her face.

"A gold and silver necklace with a giant ruby, a small jeweler shop, and an Orzhov jeweler named Jorn."

The mercenary grunted. "Orzhov? That would make it five hundred gold pieces at least."

Using the money that Jorn had given her, Myrica showed the man half of the bag's original content, the rest still in her pocket.

Raising his eyebrows, the man nodded. "It will be buried in a green bag in that field by the end of the week." He reached out to grab the bag of coins, but Myrica pulled it away. "I want to see how you do it."

Surprised, the man looked her in face for the first time. "I can't…"

The man seemed to see something in Myrica's eyes, because he instead said, "It would cost you double."

With a sly smile, Myrica dumped the remaining coins into the bag.

"You already…? Never mind. Be in front of the shop the day after tomorrow at noon." And just like that, he vanished.

Lost in her thoughts and memories as she was, Myrica did not even notice her progress through the dark city of Ravnica. As she reminisced about the events that had brought her here, Myrica realized with a start that she was already at her destination.


	3. Unexpected Encounters

As Myrica journeyed through the dark alleys of Ravnica, there was another who flew silently and secretly above them. It was an unusual sphinx, one that had given up many of its racial preferences for her guild. This sphinx was, of course, Isperia, guildmaster of the Azorius. If anyone had spotted such a prestigious member of the Ravnican society wandering the city at night, many a question would have arisen. But through a combination of magic, darkness, and luck, the sphinx managed to make her way above the city without detection.

It was extremely unusual for the guildmaster to be sulking about, but she desperately needed to meet with someone, an old acquaintance, thus her lack of caution. Isperia landed in front of a rundown clock tower, which had long since ceased to function. She crept up the stairs, but allowed the stairs to creak so the clock tower's resident would know she was coming.

She arrived at the top, and sure enough, there was the wizened old sphinx, wide-awake, waiting for her.

"You came sooner than I expected. I would have thought you could hold out for at least another week." The old sphinx said with a slight chuckle.

"Enough of your games!" Isperia said as loud as she dared. "You continue to plague me with those blasted dreams. I come here not to answer your call, but end your calling. By force, if necessary." She added menacingly.

The old sphinx was nonchalant. "Please. If you had wanted to kill me, you wouldn't have alerted me to your presence. Although, I was already awake, it was a kind gesture." He said mockingly.

Isperia slammed her front paw down, nearly cracking the old wood boards. "Fine! Then tell what it is you are so eager to say to me." She said.

"I entrust you with the information because you are the only one of our kind in high enough rank to do something with it. And I do not trust anyone else. I do not entirely trust you." He said.

"But it is imperative someone know other than me, because I can do nothing to stop it. The plane and city of Ravnica are in great danger. There are those who seek to destroy Ravnica in its entirety. If nothing is done, the plane itself will collapse in on itself, and kill all its inhabitants, unless there are planeswalker we don't know about.

Though she did not trust this old sphinx entirely either, but all sphinxes were known for their intellect, and this one seemed to old to be trying to pull some sort of scam. Besides, old grudges influenced her. "I knew it. Which one of them is it? It's the Izzet isn't it? I always knew that dragon's plots could mean nothing but trouble."

The old sphinx shook his head. "No, it is not one of the guilds. It is something else. I cannot even tell if this threat comes from within or without the plane, but I can tell you with utter certainty that it is not any of the guilds. This is…someth9ng else."

The leader of the Senate sneered. "And here I thought all of our kind were intelligent. Obviously you have developed a sense of paranoia. You are a demented old fool without the slightest idea of the affairs that concern this place!"

And with that Isperia attacked.

The old sphinx laughed and said, "Well you are right about one thing Isperia. I have become paranoid in my time of solitude. I have told you what I know, and with that, I rid myself of any culpability in your courts. I hope, for all our sakes, you heed my warning." And with that, the sphinx's illusion vanished, leaving Isperia to pounce on to thin air.

And higher up in the old tower, the bell rung twelve times, marking the middle of the night.

Far away from the tower, a young Devkarin elf heard the bells begin to ring and seized his chance. While the slow, loud rings were all that the guards at an old Orzhov chapel heard, there was in fact the faintest and, thanks to the bell tower, undetectable noise of twigs snapping and stones shifting.

The elf had only just been initiated as a full and official member of the guild, and he was eager to complete this mission perfectly, as it had been assigned to him by the last person he would have expected: Jarad, the Golgari guildmaster himself. The young Devkarin, Kinlor, was determined to please the lich that was his commander-in-chief, so he had waited meticulously for the right moment to present itself.

His mission was simple enough. There had been word that this old chapel was used as an infrequent meeting place for high-ranking Orzhov members. So Kinlor had been sent to plant some moss and mold among the stone and wood of the building. This Golgari fungus was used to record and listen in on any information of value.

Kinlor finished placing the fungus by the eighth ring. He stealthily dashed out of the structure, but stopped as he saw the two guards he thought were patrolling the rear end of the chapel pointing their blades at him. They led him back inside.

"Well look what we have here. Some of that Golgari scum crawling around our sacred territory." Said the first of the guards.

"How much do you think he'll fetch? I'd reckon he's worth at least a couple hundred gold pieces." This second guard said.

"Yeah I think that's about right." The first one said.

Kinlor said nothing, because just as he had reentered the chapel, he saw a piece of moss glow a faint green, for only a few seconds. He knew that meant that someone was listening to this. The guards however, kept talking.

"But hey, I wonder hat he was doing here in the first place? After all, he was _leaving_. It probably means he was done doing whatever it was he was here to do." Said the second guard suspiciously.

A female voice behind the guards answered his question. "Why this young one was here on a very important mission, to plant fungus that would listen in on conversations of interest, and foolishly got caught. The little he did do right of his mission led me straight to here, and due to a foolish sense of duty and loyalty, I am forced to abandon my mission and save his sorry hide. That would mean killing you both."

The guards hadn't even turned around when a knife thunked into each of their backs, and they slumped to the floor. In the doorway of the chapel stood a woman garbed in plants and had snakes instead of hair. She looked at Kinlor with distaste. Kinlor somehow got the feeling she was a high-ranking Golgari, even though he had never seen nor heard of this person ever.

"You stupid little fool. These Orzhov guards never complete a full route of patrol. It would have been easier to sneak in through the back and you never would have been detected." The woman said.

Strangely enough, Kinlor felt defiant, despite whatever he suspected the woman of being. "Well it wouldn't have mattered if you hadn't told those guards what I was doing. The Orzhov will interrogate their spirits and then never use this as a meeting place."

The woman raised her eyebrows, surprised, and maybe the slightest bit impressed. The expression left in a heartbeat though, replaced with the previous scowl. "Yes of course, you're right," she said sarcastically, "because they would most certainly use a place where two guards were found dead and a Golgari known to have infiltrated. The entire mission was worthless the second the guards noticed you."

Kinlor said nothing, as he didn't see what he could say.

"You, you little upstart brat, have cost me the most important assassination of my life. The one blasted creature that sent me to rot and suffer for years on end, and I could have killed her tonight. If it weren't for you…" the gorgon said venomously.

"Well I am truly sorry, but if I might ask, if your mission was so important, why save me at all? Why not simply let me, one of the lowest ranking members of my guild, die, so you could complete your important task." Kinlor asked, staring at the woman intently.

The gorgon returned his stare. She remained silent for a moment, and then said, "You are now in my debt. You will grant me the favors that I ask of, and you will do so without question. And so you understand why, listen to my tale:

"Many years ago, the Azorius Senate set out on a vicious campaign to capture and imprison all known followers and members of the Swarm. Among those they found was me. I spent so much time under the cruel captivity of the Senate, until I finally managed to…escape. How I did it, even I did not know at the time. But I spent two years training myself to be the remarkable killer I am now. I then came back to this city, and began to enforce my creed: A person should die the death they deserve. And so I carried out my vigilantism according to this code. I cut out the tongues of corrupt, lying officials, I stabbed out the eyes of many a Dimir spy, and crippled the knees of many proud and vain Orzhov enforcers, along with stealing every last dime from them. But for the Azorius…for my jailers I reserve a special punishment. And tonight, do you know who was at that clock tower you used as a distraction? Do you know who was there alone, and defenseless? It was the cursed judge who sentenced me and condemned me, the one who gave the order to hunt down the Golgari, the one who now rules the Senate. Isperia herself."

Kinlor was shocked at this tale. But, still retaining his defiance and nerve, he said, "I am truly sorry for your sufferings and for your lost opportunity. I can promise you I will help you find another such opportunity, but I cannot grant you any wish. There are lines I will not cross. Betraying my guild, for instance."

The woman gazed at Kinlor with grudging admiration. "No, I suppose I cannot expect that od anyone in this city can I? Very well, do, as you will, tell Jarad of my existence and presence in the city. I daresay he knows who I am." Then she hesitated for a moment. "And since I suspect he will not tell you, I think you should know, I am—"

"A planeswalker?" Kinlor asked.

For the first time, the woman smiled. "You are intuitive. You will do well in Ravnica. You merely lack experience. Yes I am a planeswalker. That is how I escaped and that is how I spent my two years of training. My name is Vraska."

Kinlor had already deduced much of what she had said, except for her name, but he was still amazed he had met a planeswalker for himself. Vraska turned to leave, but then she looked over her shoulder.

"I sense you can help Ravnica with what is to come. That is why I saved you."

And before Kinlor could ask her what she meant, Vraska planeswalked away.


End file.
